Skip to content
Two of today's most noted practitioners of the Tony Rice guitar style are teaming up for selected tour dates next year and beyond. Wyatt Rice is Tony's brother, who learned at the master's knee and has served as his rhythm guitarist this past 30 years. Richard Bennett not only epitomizes Tony's approach to flatpicking, he [...]
Bluegrass is one of the few genres of music in which instrumental skill is showcased just as much or more than vocal skill. As such, many of the best known tunes in bluegrass are instrumentals, made for showing off a picker’s skill. Tim Smith, a North Carolina-based fiddler, has recently released an album that does [...]
Roosterfest last Sunday was a wonderful day full of awesome music, with folks reuniting, catching up, swapping stories and remembering the great Rooster Ruley who passed away earlier this year Rooster was a truly unique character who seemed to be from an earlier time in many ways. He was an amazing musician, and could be [...]
This weekend, family, friends and fans of Rooster Ruley, a popular banjo picker in central Virginia who passed away on February 13, will gather to remember the man and his music at the Washington & Lee Pavilion in Lexington. It will be a combination concert and posthumous CD release party for Rooster's Ruckus, an album [...]
North Carolina fiddler Tim Smith has released a new album, titled simply Fiddler Tim Smith & Friends. Smith has quite a bluegrass pedigree, having worked for three years with The Bluegrass Cardinals, and with five previous solo projects to his credit. He has also picked up his share of contest ribbons, including first place finishes [...]
We have news today on upcoming projects from two of the most celebrated instrumentalists in contemporary bluegrass. First up is In A Groove, a solo record from Terry Baucom, his first such effort after more than 30 years as a bluegrass banjo sideman! Cindy Baucom, Terry's wife, manager, chief publicist - not to mention host [...]
Tony Rice, that legendary recluse, has shared more of himself than perhaps he had in his entire career to date. His authorized biography, Still Inside, is a remarkably candid look at the life of this seminal stylist, and the personal, professional and technical struggles undertaken along the way to his stark redefinition of how bluegrass [...]
Banjo picker Tim Davis and mandolinist Matt Hiser have collaborated on a new album of bluegrass instrumentals called Flying High. Other than the title cut, written by Hiser, it's a set of tunes that should be familiar to bluegrass listeners, though not all from the traditional canon. They have solid versions of favorites like Earl [...]
Not long ago we wrote about the Sunset Drive tour of Japan. Now we bring you news of the recording for which the tour was named. Maro Kawabata brought together several of his friends and heros for the recording Sunset Drive. The line up includes: Wyatt Rice, Patty Mitchell, Rickie Simpkins, Sammy Shelor, Ronnie Rice, [...]
David Via is one of those guys whose name bluegrass fans may recognize, but without necessarily being familiar with his music. Unless you follow the jamgrass scene, where Via is a hero, or the cult of acoustic/bluegrass songwriters where he also has a very strong following. Via (rhymes with sky) is the winner of the [...]
